Private Schools '10-12
| Kicking my kids into gear Recently I had to light a fire under my AP studio students and tell them they needed to kick it up a notch. I felt like they were holding back and not really producing high quality, highly engaging art. Now most times when I tell them something, it is usually in one ear and out the other, but I decided to enhance my lecture with a good old fashion book. Of course if I leave it up to them, they would not buy it and read it, so I broke this book up into chapters and am having them read a chapter a week and answer a few questions. The book that I am having them read is called Art and Fear, Observations on the perils (and rewards) of artmaking by David Bayles and Ted Orland. The students can either email me their answers, or most are choosing to answer them right in their sketchbooks. I already saw a difference after week 2 and see them continuing to explore and be more creative now on week 5. The book is helpful for all artists and is a pretty quick read. I recommend it for all artists and teachers. Here are the questions I had the kids answer for each chapter. Art and Fear Chapter One Reflections Art is not a magical gift bestowed by the gods: you have the skills to create and do so well. You have to believe it, and you have to learn how to make your work distinctive – to you! 1. Our flaws are not our weaknesses in our art – explain. Why are even the failed pieces essential even to you? 2. Who do you want to be as an artist? How will you define yourself and in turn what mark are you willing to make on the world? 3. What path do you want to take this year as an artist? What do you want to get out of this class? 4. How do you want to nourish yourself with your art? What do you want to get out of making art? Chapter 2 Art and Fear Questions 1. Making art is revealing and dangerous. How do you get past the self-doubt, not quit, forge ahead? 2. Do not let your current goal be your only goal. What unresolved issues or loose threads do you want to carry out in your next pieces, how will you do this? 3. Quitting is different than stopping. Art is a process of stopping and starting. What is your active participation with your pieces so they are no longer just potential? How are you going ot manipulate the media to get it to do what you want? Chapter 3 art and fear questions 1. What are your fears about yourself and your reception by others? How is this preventing you from doing your own work or your best possible work? 2. You make good work by making lots of not so good work. What does this mean and how do you measure this to good work? 3. Whatever you have is whatever you need to produce your best work. How do you get to that, what is your best work? 4. Ask your work what it needs not what you need. Look at your work clearly – take a step back, without judgment, without need or fear, without wishes or hopes. Listen to your work. What does it say it needs? Chapter 4 Art and Fear questions 1. How important is the acceptance of your art during critique? Why? Should it be about acceptance? 2. What truly is the purpose of critique? What should you be getting out of critique? 3. Acceptance means having your work counted as the real thing, approval means having people like it. Is either of these really important when exploring or risk taking in your art? What do you want the end results to look like, how are you going to execute it? Chapter 5 art and fear questions 1. When is it right to stick with familiar tools and materials and when is it right to reach out and embrace those that offer new possibilities? 2. Working within the self-imposed discipline of a particular form eases the prospect of having to reinvent yourself with each new piece. How can you make new challenging pieces without having to reinvent yourself? 3. How are you going to use what you know to make something new and challenging to you? Chapter 6 Art and Fear Questions 1. Think about the purpose in your work. What message do you want your viewer to get from it? 2. How can you say what you want to say, create the art you need to to be expressive, yet still have the freedom to display the work that you need to in our environment? 3. Competition can be self-destructive. Do you agree? Why or why not? 4. Do you need the rest of the world to tell you your work is ok? Are you ok with your own work enough to view everyone else’s opinion as just that – opinion? Chapter 7 Art and Fear Questions 1. Most people stop making art when they stop being a student. Figuratively or literally, can this be both? Why or why not? 2. Can nothing really useful be learned from viewing others’ work? Why or why not? 3. Does it help you to know others’ processes? Why or why not? Chapter 8 Art and Fear Questions 1. Is your art worth doing? What about your art is worth doing? 2. Art that deals with ideas is more interesting than art that deals with technique. Agree / disagree? Should technique have a place in art? Why or why not? 3. Respond automatically to the familiar and you are free to respond selectively to the unfamiliar. What does this mean to you and your art? 4. Style is the natural consequence of a habit. Style is habit, is this good or bad? Do you know what your style is? How do you know what your style is? Chapter 9 Art and Fear Questions 1. How can you make art that satisfies you? 2. The only work really worth doing – the only work you can do convincingly – is the work that focuses on the things you care about. What things do you care enough about to make them into a piece of art, why? Art curriculumThe more teachers I talk to lately, the more I hear about curriculum being re-written. I have gone through this process several times for several districts. Since I am the only art teacher in these schools, it has been solely up to me to write the art curriculum. I am sharing what I have written for my current school. We wrote vertical plans, a general successive outline, for each class we taught. We were also asked to tie them into the state and ACT standards. I have all of these tables and charts in this document. Vertical plan for all art classes Art fundamentals - basic art vocabulary - proper names for tools - proper use and names of media - exposure to a wide range of media both 2-D and 3-D - application and understanding of element and principles of design and art - production of quality pieces (good craftsmanship) - use of references from other academics as well as life experiences Ceramics / Advanced - correct use of clay vocabulary - correct use of clay tools and knowledge of their names - transformation from a 2-D plan to a 3-D product - application and follow through of craftsmanship - wheel process - hand build process - glaze process - function vs. sculpture - exposure to ceramicists past and present Drawing - use of elements of art - use of variety of media - advancement of skill of a variety of media - honing observational skills and transformation of 3-D objects to 2-D drawings - color blending and theory - observation of light and shadow and application with a variety of media - understand and depict illusion of space on a 2-D surface - mark making with a variety of media - creating meaning and evoking emotion using drawing media Drawing Adv. – mostly the same processes and techniques, more extensive and in depth content and meaning, more conceptual pieces, more sophisticated handling of media Sculpture - ability to transform from 2-D to 3-D - use and application of a variety of 3-D media - craftsmanship stressed - proper use of tools - proper vocabulary for tools and media - basic understanding of principles and elements in 3-D design - understanding of form in space - understanding and use of scale to create meaning and evoke emotion Metals - proper use of tools and media - understanding of 2-D verses 3-D design - understanding of cutting, filing and sanding techniques - understanding and application of a variety of soldering techniques - stone setting – cabachons - enameling process - glass fused cabs - surface changing techniques - wearable vs. small sculptural pieces Fibers - proper use of tools and media - dying techniques - knitting - weaving - felting - wearable / wall art differences - understanding of different fabrics - fibers as related to other cultures Painting - application of acrylic, watercolor and oil paints - color theory and color mixing - light and shadow in regards to color - understanding of the transparency and consistency of paints, understanding the limitations - use of proper names of tools - experimentation with a variety of application techniques and brush strokes - exposure to painters past and present, styles and movements Painting Adv. – mostly the same processes and techniques, more extensive and in depth content and meaning, more conceptual pieces, more sophisticated handling of media Photography / Advanced - extensive knowledge of light and contrast - proper use of tools and equipment i.e. SLR camera, enlargers, heat mounting press, chemicals, film - understanding and application of principles of design - affects of light and time on film and prints - exposure to current and past photographers - craftsmanship of prints Photo Adv. – More experimental techniques to the surface of the prints, more sophisticated prints that express meaning and evoke feelings Design - foundation of elements of art and principles of design - knowledge of a variety of art careers - use and application of a variety of media - extensive study of compositional skills - craftsmanship stressed - color theory - use of text as an artistic element - understanding of client and commissioned work Click here for the full document and tables that tie the state standard to the vertical plan points. |
